Flail chest is a medical condition that occurs when several ribs are broken in several places. The injury destroys the integrity of the chest cavity and consequently it can no longer support respiration. Acute treatment options include mechanical ventilation (intubation) which does not require an intact chest. In former times and in a hospital setting a system of weights would be set up bedside. Each rib would have been attached to weight that was draped over a pulley system to allow the ribs to re-approximate their positions under the pull of gravity on the weights. This technique supplies sufficient rigidity to support respiration but has been abandoned in clinical practice.
Today flail chest is a common battlefield injury where protective body armor distributes mechanical stresses over the entire chest. If enough force is applied many ribs will break in many locations at once. The injury is also common in high-speed automobile crashes where the steering wheel can cause a blunt trauma to the chest.
The device and system of the present invention maybe used in a field setting or hospital setting and may be very useful for transporting the injured in a vehicle where weight systems and respirators are unworkable.